Santo Diame

Source
ABC do Santo Daime – Maria Betania Barbosa Albuquerque – EDaUEPA, Belem, PA 2007

Santo Daime is a religious doctrine that originated in the Amazon jungle at the beginning of the XX century whose main characteristic is the ingestion of the sacramental drink Daime, renaming of the millennial indigenous concoction Ayahuasca.

The name Daime was given to the sacrament by Mestre Raimundo Irineu Serra, the creator of the doctrine and comes from the “divine” verb “to give”, dar in Portuguese, give to those who need or ask. It indicates the invocation to be made to the spirit of the medicine prior to its ingestion. Several Santo Daime hymns contain the expressions “daime forca, daime luz, daime amor” (give me strength, give me light, give me love).

Born in the state of Maranhao, descendant of African slaves Irineu Serra arrived in the state of Acre looking for work in the gum industry. He served in the military as a frontier guard where Brasil meets Peru and Bolivia and it was in Bolivia in the region of Cobija that he encountered Ayahuasca. Following his visions of a female spirit being called Clara who identified herself as Our Lady of Conception, the Queen of the forest, he received detailed instructions on what was to become the doctrine. He moved to Rio Branco and started sharing the sacrament with the local rural community, in particular the local blacks. According to one of his close comrades the first “trabalho” (literally transalted as “work”, the Daime designation of ceremony) was conducted on 26th May 1930.
In the following years Irineu developed the doctrine and in 1945 he founded the Centro de Iluminacao Crista Luz Universal (CICLU), also known as Alto Santo. In the same year Daniel Pereira de Matos, who had been attending Irineu’s works since 1936, founded what is known today as Barquinha (see Blog post Barquinha).

In 1964 Irineu authorised the opening of the first Daime centre outside of the state of Acre in Porto Velho, state of Rondonia (Centro Ecletico de Correntes da Luz Universal – CECLU).
After Irineu’s passing, some misunderstandings within the brotherhood led to the formation of a dissident group and the founding in 1975 of the Centro Ecletico da Fluente Luz Universal Raimundo Irineu Serra (CEFLURIS) under the guidance of Padrinho Sebastiao, one of the closest followers of Irineu.

At present the original centre of Alto Santo is guided by the Peregrina Gomes Serra, last wife of Irineu, who does not recognise dissidents.

CEFLURIS is now the most well known Daime centre in the world especially from the late ‘70s when they started to receive many visitors from all over the world which led to the creation of several Daime centres in the south east of Brasil and abroad (CEFLURIS has Daime distribution centres in the USA, Japan, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Germany, France, Austria and England (data from 2001).

One of the foundations of the Santo Daime doctrine is spiritual seeking through the use of sacred plants, a method for spiritual learning which allows one to experience a state of deeply expanded consciousness. In this expanded state one obtains a therapeutic vision of ones neuroses, behavioural patterns and emotional dynamics of addictions as well as being able to question concepts and understandings about the nature of reality and transcend them in their foundations. In general people who take part in these rituals feel a deeper connection to everything and everyone, a desire to live in balance with nature, an openness to the other, and much more.

Of significant importance is the role of the forest which is considered a sacred temple as it provides the two plants to make the sacred brew and it was the place where Mestre Irineu received his teachings. Hence the importance of forest preservation and replanting of the vine and leaf in order to ensure supply. The forest is also where Padrinho Sebastiao dreamt of reuniting his people within an ecological and community style living project (see hymn number 1 of Hinario Nova Era).
Santo Daime is a pluralistic hybrid religion harmoniously combining indigenous, christian, African, spiritist and esoteric influences. This is clearly apparent in the lyrics of the hymns, the decoration of the churches and the inclusion of different traditions in the prayers. Several international groups are now learning Portuguese in order to sing and understand the content of the songs.

Music

The Santo Daime doctrine is essentially musical. Its message is conveyed through hymns sung by the participant and accompanied by a range of instruments (special nylon string guitars, accordion, drums, at times flute). the rhythm can be quite strong and is kept with the maraca’ a metal rattle of indigenous origins. I am told that the maraca’ represents a shield against unwanted negative energies and is played in front of the chest.
The repetitiveness of the verses works as a mantra and together with the repetitiveness and melodies are meant to facilitate concentration, induce a state of trance and promote the assimilation of the content of the messages. The hymns are received in a mediunic fashion from the spiritual realm and have a diversified content: appreciation of the various manifestation of nature (sun, moon, stars, etc.), history of the doctrine itself, invocation of protecting spirits (Chrsitian like Jesus and natural like Yemanja’ the spirit of the oceans). Within messages conveyed by the hymns are solidarity, forgiveness, humility, respect for nature and other humans.

Affiliation

When someone decides they want to join the doctrine officially they go through an initiation ritual called Fardamento. Farda is the name of the uniform the members of the church use during the works. There are two uniforms, white and blue worn in different types of works. Members also wear a metal badge featuring the 6 pointed star (symbol of King Solomon) with the crescent moon (symbol of Our Lady of Conception, the Queen of the Forest) in the centre.

The Santo Daime ritual is characterised by a strong structure probably originated from the time Mestre Irineu spent in the military. The members are often referred to as a battalion of the light composed of soldiers forming the Estado Maior and guided a General (Mestre Irineu). Silence is observed by everyone outside of the singing of the hilario (collection of channeled prayer songs). Arms and legs must be uncrossed to allow for the current to flow. Members are expected to actively participate singing (and/or dancing) and to be fully present. Through the ingestion of the sacred drink participants achieve an expanded state of consciousness in which they experience visions (miracao), connect to beings in the astral dimensions, receive insights into their lives, and observe their thoughts and feelings. In order to achieve a visionary state the body needs to be clean, hence the purgative qualities of the brew (vomiting, diarrhoea) which works on all levels allowing one to let go of what no longer serves.

The ritual room (salao) is an important symbol of this sacred work, being the centre of emission and reception of all that is good, happy and prosperous. There is a six pointed star altar which is adorned with different symbols of the various religious aspects cohabiting in harmony. During the works some of the more experienced members assume the role of “fiscal” who assist people in need and make sure all is in order in the salao.

There are different types of rituals in the doctrine danced work or hinario, usually to commemorate saints, and special dates like the Mastre’s birthday and passing etc. concentration, combination of songs and silence ending with the Cruzerinho hinario which summarises the doctrine
healing work, focussed on healing on all levels, uses a stronger Daime and songs specifically for healing missa, to honour the souls that have passed cruzes, healing work over three days
mesa branca, kardecist inspired work with mediunic incorporation and development of mediunic qualities. Sao Miguel, similar to Mesa Branca can include the calling of the Umbanda linhas, it’s a spiritual cleansing work gira, work with explicit umbanda influence, free dancing, incorporation, combination of daime and umabanda songs feitio the making of the Daime, can last several days up to 3 weeks